Reviewing the Roadmap to Retirement

Too often, thoughts of retirement and how to sustain a comfortable lifestyle are topics many people either choose to delay or have difficulty devoting adequate time to truly consider. With the evaporation of most company-administered pension plans and constant political threats regarding Social Security, contemplating your post-employment financial future can be daunting.

The Harkin Institute for Public Policy and Citizen Engagement at Drake University and the U.S. Department of Labor sought to address such issues when they hosted Roadmaps to Retirement: Taking Stock and Looking Forward on December 7 at the Tom and Ruth Harkin Center.

The event featured a panel focused on employer retirement savings programs, led by Kathleen Kennedy Townsend of the U.S. Department of Labor; and a discussion of Social Security and Disability Insurance, moderated by Senator Tom Harkin (retired). The panelists, including the Acting Social Security Commissioner Dr. Kilolo Kijakazi, discussed the challenges faced by the Social Security and Disability Insurance programs and reform efforts to strengthen and sustain the programs for future generations. The panel on employer program emphasized the need to simplify decisions in order to improve retirement savings access and accumulation, and choices for lifetime income.

The event was live-streamed and can be viewed below or on The Harkin Institute YouTube channel.